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A Closer Look at Winter Damage

But first, take a look at this gorgeous rainbow that we had on Friday! The five-day stretch of warm temperatures last week really jump-started the garden. Now that plants are putting out new growth, it is easier to see what kind of damage the winter left. Back in mid-January, we experienced five straight days of below-freezing temperatures. This caused much damage in Portland and areas where frigid winds were a factor. Here, we were fortunate to not get the wind and the cold temperatures were dampened by a blanket of snow. That said, it was a tough time for the garden and there are noticeable casualties but no outright deaths that I have seen. The bottlebrush ( Callistemon 'Woodlander's Red') did not like the cold at all. It was planted six years ago, in the north-facing garden no less, and I've not experienced die-back on it until now. A local expert said to cut it all the way back so that is what I did. If it doesn't make it, I won't be too distraught. It is

Passionflower

Passionflower  
There are a few blooms this week on Passionflower (Passiflora incarnata) "Waterloo Blue". I'm always amazed by the architecture of the blooms. The vine has become quite vigorous over the years and shares an arbor with Sweet Autumn Clematis and a "Rev d'Or" rose. Unfortunately the blooms have never been profuse with lack of sunshine being the probably culprit. It also has a tendency to scamper over other plants. However, it is easy to pull out.


Text and photos by Phillip Oliver, Dirt Therapy

Comments

  1. I have always admired the passion vine. I don't think I can grow it here. I have a clematis that looks very similar when it blooms but it is one of those short ones that I often overlook. Maybe with all this global warming I should try the Passionflower. When I see pictures like yours it makes me want to try.

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  2. I too like the Passionflower. Mine is growing abundantly this year. So many blooms. The funny little green fruit it makes -- we picked them when we were kids; called them apricots. They tasted awful!

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  3. When I was a kid and we picked cotton by hand and sometimes we would find something that looked very similar to this in the cotton field. The flowers were gone when cotton picking time came around but the vines often had produced some kind of fruit. Usually only one to two pods, for lack of a better description. And the fruit was, well, not something you would serve guests or even take to house. But it was sweet and gooey and fun to eat when the last thing you wanted to be doing was picking cotton and stuffing it in a sack.

    When I saw this, I looked it up on wiki. According to that site there's about 500 species of these flowering plants. So I'm wondering if this one produces fruit and if so, have you ever heard of anyone eating it except for bored little barefoot boys picking cotton?

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  4. David, I don't recall seeing any fruits on mine but I will keep a look out.

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  5. Nature never ceases to amaze. How she came up with something so interesting as that flower (I haven't seen them before) is beyond me.

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  6. Passion vines showed up in my South Carolina garden. Those flowers look like space aliens to me. :o)

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  7. Phillip, I've never grown that variety of passionflower, but I have some that grow along my deck. They were not profuse this year because the morning glories beat them out, but last year, Gulf Fritillaries frolicked all over it. It was like music in motion. I love the color of your passionflowers, and they are such a food for Fritillary caterpillars. Have a beautiful weekend.~~Dee

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  8. Wow, those blooms are amazing. I did grow them here a few years ago, and enjoyed a few of those gorgeous flowers. But for the next two years there wasn't a single bloom. I gave up, tried to tear it out, but it has other ideas. It keeps trying to sneak back into my garden! I just wish it would bloom.

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  9. Fantastic flower, great colors :) Regards

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  10. Phillip my passion flowers have large green oval seed pods about the size of a large egg. The seeds inside are gooey.

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